Othertale
by Gamer Geek Jordan
Summary: One night, Aviana, confused and hurting, stumbles up Mount Ebott and ends up surrounded by freinds she'd never imagined. But something about her is very different from the other humans that had fallen into the underground... Trigger warning: child abuse mentioned in chapter one (and a little in chapter 4 after she's met Toriel)
1. Mount Ebott

**Hi guys! Yup, I've decided to re-vamp this story, too! And if you don't know what I mean, well I probably just finished this redo first. I'm giving both of my longer stories an overhaul since, looking back, I think they both could use a good amount of work. Not a lot, just enough to improve their quality. If I haven't started** _ **Nine Humans?**_ **yet, then don't worry, I will soon. I'm probably just stuck trying to re-word or add something. Anywho, let's get on with this!**

 **(Disclaimer: All rights for Undertale and its characters and music belong to Toby Fox and the crew that helped create this amazing game. I only own my OC(s) and nothing more.)**

Aviana had a pretty simple life up until that one night.

She would go to school and learn quietly in the back, walk home, and do her homework whie locked in her room. Then she would go donstairs to have dinner with her mother, being as quiet and polite as possible. Sometimes she would be hit regardless, but it usually kept things to a minimum. So did holding in her tears until she was back in her room.

It was a hard routine for the girl to get used to, but she really had no choice- Aviana's mother was her only family. Her father had left before Aviana was even born, and her mother's parents- according to her during druken rants- had never loved her and had breated her when they learned who she was dating. And of course things only got worse after she got pregnant with Aviana. Apparently the last thing her father ever did for the family was send them to their current home- the house he used to live in. It was because of all these factors, Aviana couldn't bring herself to hate her mother. It wasn't her fault; it was her father's and grandparents' faults. They were the reason she needed alcohol for comfort, the reason she hurt her own daughter. She was scared and hurt and confused. Just as Aviana had been when the beatings started.

But one night changed everything. Her mother stumbled in their house, reaking of alcohol. Unprepared for this, Aviana had tried to sneak away, but the woman honed in on her and attacked. She started beating her harder than ever, screaming the whole time. "I hate you" and "You're worthless" and "I never _wanted_ you!" were the most repeated phrases, though most of her words were incomprehensibly slurred. Aviana had never heard thing like this from her mother and was so hurt and confused by it all. She eventually struggled out of her mother's grasp and bolted in the first direction she could- towards the glass patio door, which her mom had left open after coming inside.

The young girl burst outside, nearly falling on her face because of the drop. Once she recovered, she flew forward, running for a time she couldn't place. When she finally stopped, she collapsed against a tree, panting and still crying. Now that she was alone, she let herself start openly sobbing as she slowly fell to the ground. What on earth had that been about? Her mother was hurting, sure, but... Aviana never thought it would cause her to lash out that badly. She still loved Aviana, didn't she?

... Didn't she?

After struggling to regain her breath for a few minutes, Aviana stood up and wiped at her face. She finally realized just how cold it was and how thin her striped shirt really was, and she hugged herself as she looked around. It only took a few moments for her to realize where she was: the base of Mount Ebott. She'd heard the stories, just like everyone else- the stories of other young children wandering up the mountain and never being seen or heard from again. Aviana shivered, both from that thought and the sudden burst of wind that came through the bare trees. She thought about turning back, but the nearest city was 20-some-odd miles away, and the very idea of what her mother might do to her now... Well, she decided just to stay on the mountain for tonight. Besides, those kids could all just... be living with a nice mountain man who adopted them because he was lonely.

... Who was Aviana kidding, they died. Still. It somehow sounded better to her to die by a stanger's hands than those of someone who she thought loved her. So, she started climbing. On her way up she looked around for any sign of a house, and occasionally called out in hopes of somebody being nearby. Nobody ever responded. She pushed onward, desperately trying to find anyone who could help her.

That's why she didn't see the branch that caused her to trip and fall into the nearby hole.

O~o~o~o~o~O

Aviana groaned when she came to. She slowly pushed herself up, instantly sending waves of pain through her body. Everything felt so stiff and sore... She took a few minutes to massage at her shoulders, hoping to at least quell that pain, before looking around. She waws sitting on a small patch of golden flowers in a dark room. There was only a single ray of light coming from... the ceiling? The girl looked up. _Yikes... Look like I fell at least twenty feet... Probably more,_ she thought. _No wonder I'm hurting so much... That and of course-_ She shook her head. Now wasn't the time to think about that.

Looking back up, she made a startling discovery. What she thought was a normal ceiling turned out to be made of dirt. She stood up as quickly as her body would allow and walked carefully until she found a wall. It, too, was dirt, and from what she could see in the dim lighting it seemed to slope, almost like the walls of a pyramid. So she was definitely underground... What now?


	2. Flowey and Toriel

Aviana turned her head and saw what appeared to be a long hallway. She started down the hall and eventually found a door on her left. When she went through it, she spotted a lone flower in the center of the room. She stepped into the room, and the flower suddenly turned around. Aviana jumped back in shock, and the two simply stared at each other for what felt like years.

Finally, though, the flower regained composure and smiled at her. "Um, howdy there! Why not, uh, come a little closer and say hi!" it called. Aviana had a giant knot in her stomach and everything was screaming for her to run... but she had nowhere to run to. So, she hesitantly approached the living flower. "Hiya! My name's Flowey! Flowey the flower!" the flower introduced once she was almost directly in front of it... him or her? Do flowers **have** genders? It sounded male, but...

"Um... Hi? I'm Aviana," Aviana responded. Was she going insane? She was talking to a _freaking flower._ And even crazier IT WAS RESPONDING. "How, uh, nice to meet you! You must be new to the Underground, right?" Aviana nodded, but the question seemed rhetorical, as it... he continued speaking without stopping. "Someone oughtta teach you how things work down here! And since no one else is around, l'il old me will have to do!" Flowey chirped. "First thing's first: let's introduce you to your soul!" A vine appeared from the ground, and pointed towrd Aviana, glowing. Before she could fully register what was happening, the vine flicked back and Aviana's chest tightened. Suddenly, a warm pink envoloped the area. When Aviana tilted her head slightly, she found its source: a hot pink heart.

... What. The. Actual. Hell.

Even Flowey was giving the heart an odd look. It seemed like he knew what he was doing, but suddenly... it was like he'd never seen an object like that before in his life. He quickly shook his head and his smile returned, though it looked more forced. "W-well, um. Now we can continue with your lesson," he said. The already dim room seemed to grow darker somehow, until soon Aviana could see nothing but Flowey and the pink heart. "That heart-shaped object in front of you? That's your **soul** , the very culmination of your being." _S-soul? What, like... like the spirit version of me or something? But then why doesn't it look like me?_ "You can use that soul to show other monsters you trust them! And when you do, monsters will want to share with you!"

He winked then, creating some kind of strange white... _things_ to appear. "Monster share through these, uh... little white..." He hesitated for a few seconds before continuing. "Little white 'friendliness pellets'. Yeah." ... Somehow Aviana wasn't convinced. "And if you gather a lot of 'friendliness pellets' you'll gain EXP, which will increase your LV!" Aviana tilted her head. "LV? Level?" she asked. Flowey giggled. "No, silly! LV stands for LOVE! And you want a lot of LOVE, right?" Aviana decided not to answer. It... somehow felt like a trap. "So just move around, and gather as many pellets as you can!" The "pellets" began moving, converging on Aviana's soul. A chill ran down Aviana's spine. She did _not_ like the looks of this. Seemingly in reaction to her fear, her soul moved closer to her and slightly off to the right. The pellets missed her soul by half a centimeter. She flinched when they came closer to her, but they seemed to pass right by her, as if Flowey had aimed specifically for her soul. Or as if he couldn't hurt her body? She hoped for the latter, but it was hard to be sure.

When Aviana looked back to Flowey, his smile had shrunken and his eye was barely twitching. "Hey. Friend. You, uh, missed them. All of them. L-let's just try again, shall we?" More pellets appeared and also moved toward Aviana's soul, even faster than the others. Aviana _really_ didn't trust him now, so she made a conscious effort to make her soul dodge. It seemed visualizing her soul moving was all she needed to do, so she did just that. Flowey's smile finally fell. "Is this some kind of sick joke? Or is your brain just dead? I told you to run. Into. The. BULLETS!" he shouted, conjuring up twice as many as before. In a panic, Aviana only barely managed to avoid them all. When she did, she looked back to se Flowey smiling again- though not kindly, as before.

"I get it now..." Good, because Aviana didn't. "You _have_ been here before, haven't you?" Um... No...? "You just wanted to taunt me..." Uhhhhh... "Well then." Suddenly, Aviana was completely surrounded by bullets. "DIE," Flowey said in a twisted voice. As the bullets began slowly closing in, Flowey laughed maniacally. Aviana drew her soul close to her and cupped her hands around it, frantically searching for any tiny gap. _No... Th-there's no way out, I can't crawl under them, and there's no way I can make a jump... Oh no, no, I'm dead,_ she thought. Aviana closed her eyes tightly, waiting for the inevitable end.

... And she waited. And waited... And waited.

After a few seconds, she realized Flowey's laughter had stopped. Before she could open her eyes, a new voice greeted Aviana. "What a vile creature, making such a young human cry," it said. The voice was... soft. It sounded so... inviting. So homey. Aviana opened an eye to see what was in front of her now. The other opened from shock. The creature appeared to be a woman in a purle robe or dress, but she was covered entirely in pale grey fur. Instead of hair she had long, fluffy ears hanging over her shoulders, and their were horns- at least six inches long- near the back of her head. Her eyes were lilted slightly, and she was staring worriedly and carringly and Aviana. Most shocking, though, was her height; she had to be _at least_ seven feet tall! It was... intimidating, even for someone Aviana's height.

It was only after Aviana registered her appearance that she realized what the woman had said. A hand went to her face and she felt something wet. _So... I did start crying? Why...?_ she wondered. "Child? Are you alright?" the woman asked. Aviana swallowed and wiped at her face. "I-I'm fine," she mumbled. "Uh... Wh-what happened to Flowey?" she asked. The goat woman frowned slightly. "Do you mean the flower? Do not worry about him, child. I scared him off," she reassured. "Oh. Um, thanks," Aviana said. "It's no trouble at all," she said. "After all, I am the caretaker of the Ruins. I come out here each day to see if any humans have fallen. If they have, I take it upon myself to protect them," she explained. There was a pause. _Okay...? How am I supposed to respond to something like that?_

"Ah, I have not yet introduced myself, have I? My name is Toriel," the woman said. "N-nice to meet you. I'm Aviana," Aviana introduced. "Aviana?" Toriel asked, pronouncing it rather slowly. "Fascinating. I don't believe I've ever heard a name like that. It's beautiful," Toriel complimented Aviana blushed and looked at the ground. "Heh. Um, th-thanks. Most people just... say it sounds weird..." she admitted. Toriel crouched down and put a hand- paw? whatever- on Aviana's cheek, moving her head to look back up at her. "Then perhaps the world just needs more weird," she said. Aviana's blush deepened and she giggled slightly. Toriel smiled brightly and stood back up. "Come with me, Aviana. You must be hungry, yes?" As if to answer her, Aviana's stomach chose to growl just then. Both of them laughed. "I'll take that as a yes. I have a pie I finished baking, and it should be cool by the time we get back," Toriel explained, holding out a hand. Aviana looked at it hesitantly before taking it. Toriel then started leading Aviana throught the Ruins.


	3. Home

It took Toriel a bit to remember how to solve some of the puzzles, and Aviana, not being a huge fan of puzzles, couldn't really be of help. She did manage to solve the change-in-perspective puzzle, as it was easy, but for the others she'd end up zoning out. Occassionally, a monster would appear, and Aviana would chat with them for a bit. Toriel didn't seem too pleased the first time she caught her, but Aviana's persistance in befriending them seemed to eventually convince the woman that Aviana could handle herself. Yes, she had been hit a few times, but that was really inevitable. And she did manage to talk down every monster who tried to hurt her. The one monster she really wanted to talk to, however, was extremely shy. It looked like a cross between Casper the ghost and a firefly. The first time Aviana encountered one, she attempted to console it- it had looked so scared- but it fled before Aviana could finish her first word. She even saw a group of them crying in fear of each other once... Poor things.

After a good thirty minutes, the duo reached a small, quaint-looking purple house with faded windows in need of a good cleaning and a large wooden door. In front of said house was a large tree. Its leaves were red and purple, most of them on the ground. It was as if the tree thought it was fall. And seeing as Aviana's first encounter was with a talking flower, and a _rock_ had talked to them earlier, Aviana wouldn't put it out of the question for a tree to be able to think. She eyed it suspiciously as they went by, but it didn't seem to move. When Toriel opened the front door, a delicious smell wafted out, and Aviana's stomach growled again, reminding the girl that she hadn't eaten anything since dinner... last night? How long had she been unconscious anyway?

Toriel chuckled again and led her to the kitchen, where a large pie sat on the counter. As Aviana sat down, Toriel cut a big slice out of it and put it on a plate. "Here you are! Enjoy!" Toriel chirped. Aviana cut into it and took a bite. It was... different. Aviana couldn't tell _what_ the filling was, or what seasonings Toriel used, but the flavor was certainly odd. Not bad, just different. Aviana liked it. "How is it? Do you like it?" the goat asked, seeming to be somewhat nervous. When Aviana nodded, Toriel seemed to relax. "Oh good! I was worried. Most humans don't like the taste of snails!" Aviana froze in her chewing. "Especially not in a pie!" Aviana eyed the pie nervously before continuing to eat. She didn't want to be rude, and besides, it did taste pretty good. It just... wasn't something she ever would've guessed as the filling.

She finished eating quickly, before Toriel had even eaten half of her own slice of pie. Aviana took her plate to the sink, which was empty except for a bit of fur stuck in the drain. "Feel free to read any books you like, dear. I have plenty for you to choose from," Toriel commented as Aviana left the room. "Alright," Aviana said to let Toriel know she'd heard her. But she didn't plan on reading- she wanted to explore the house if she would be staying for a while.

The living room wasn't anything special: a reclining chair next to the fireplace and a bookcase on the other side of the fireplace, plus a table with three chairs around it and what looked like some kind og dead flower. The entryway had a large staircase with another, shorter bookcase just before the top step. Down the hall, Aviana saw four doors: three on her left, one on her right. She went into the first one on her left. It appeared to be a child's room, with a bin of toys at the foot of a twin-sized bed. There was a large wardrobe next to the bed, and a dresser next to that, plus a lamp in the corner. In the room, she found a dusty, empty picture frame on the dresser, along with a few drawings that appeared to have been drawn by a child. Slightly confused and off-put, she left and went into the next room.

The next room was also a bedroom, presumably Toriel's. A queen-sized bed sat against the left wall with a desk just below it. Yet another bookcase was in there, too, along with a dresser. A lone cactus sat in the corner, away from everything else. On the desk, Aviana could see an open journal, and curiosity got the better of the teen. She walked over and read the page it was open to.

 _Knock knock._

 _Who's there?_

 _A broken pencil._

 _A broken pencil who?_

 _Nevermind, it's pointless._

... Aviana was strongly tempted to close the journal, but she was afraid Toriel would notice. So instead, she settled for leaving the room. The final room on this side of the hall had a sign on it, which read in bold, red letters: UNDER REPAIRS. Odd. Aviana thought the house looked old, but also seemed sturdy- like it was made of oak or something. Aviana tried the knob, but it was locked. Damn. She'd have to ask about it later, though. There's no way it was just "under repairs." But Aviana shrugged and carried on down the hall, soon spotting a mirror on her left. She froze when she saw herself in it. She looked _terrible._ Her black hair was a total mess, tangled and even matted in places. There were bruises on her face and arms, and probably her legs, too. Dirt splotched her body, especially her face, which revealed streaks created by her tears, and her amber eyes were still slightly red and puffy. Her shirt was crumpled and ripped, and when she looked down, Aviana found her pants in the same state and that she was missing her shoes.

Was... Was that really her? Aviana rarely looked in mirrors- she really only used them to make sure bruises were covered as well as possible. This was... startling. Seeing herself made Aviana suddenly realize how tired she felt. Her body was still sore, too, adding onto the fatigue. She was dizzy all of a sudden, too, and she stumbled back down the hall until she could find a door to open. She managed to reach the bed before passing out, still fully clothed.


	4. The Truth

Aviana opened her eyes slowly and took in her surroundings. She was in the child's room. Aviana sat up and immediately hissed in pain. Her body was hurting worse than she realized... It honestly hadn't felt too bad yesterday, so why now? Had her brain just blocked it out, or had her fatigue been so bad that it overrode her pain? It didn't matter; her muscles still hurt like hell. She really just wanted to crawl into a hole and die... or at least into a hot bath and relax.

Aviana sat up and tried to think of what to do now. Was Toriel still awake? What time was it anyway? What _day?_ It seemed her head was clear for the first time since she fell, and the questions were flooding in, giving her a headache. The most prevelant thought was by far the most troubling. _Why did her mother beat her so badly?_

Aviana sat still for an unknown amount of time, letting her head swirl. She always came back to the final question... But she just couldn't find a logical reason. Why? It made no sense at all. She'd hurt Aviana before, sure- Aviana could even say it was common. But _never_ to that extent. Aviana felt something warm run down her face- a tear. She wiped at her eyes, but new tears started falling quickly. She didn't understand why it was happening, she had no reason to feel sad.

Yet Aviana cried. She realized how good it felt and let herself cry harder, surprisingly relieved to feel so intensely sad. It had been so long since she felt any real emotion besides fear. Her smiles were forced, anger was pushed down by fear of repurcusions, all of her disgust had been used up on bullies long ago, and she'd been told countless times "fear is for the weak." Aviana hadn't felt _safe_ to feel. So she gave herself these few minutes of despair to have a break. After what seemed to be hours, she finally stopped, and that was when the realization hit her- the reason why she had been crying.

Her mother didn't love her. Not enough for it to count, to make up for pain she'd inflicted on her own daughter. Even if her stories of neglect and abandonment were true, she never had to beat Aviana. She could've gotten help, talked to _somebody._ But instead, she _chose_ to hurt Aviana. And Aviana hated her for it. She had all along, but she stubbornly clung to fake love for sanity's sake. But now that she was far away from the woman- _safe_ from her- Aviana could admit it. She could let go of it all and give into her hatred. And now, she even had a chance to rebuild. She already had a new mom in Toriel, and all the other monsters seemed pretty harmless- she could have friends! Her life would finally be interesting and happy. She was determined to make sure of that.

Aviana stood up cheerfully, wincing as she was reminded of how sore her body was. She stepped out into the hall and went into the room on the other side of it. It was a very nice, somewhat fancy bathroom. The sink to her right was made of mahogany, and so was the bath tub a few feet in front of her. The sink was a bit high for her, and the tub was definitely sized to fit Toriel-sized monsters. _Looks like monsters do have to bathe after all,_ Aviana thought. The toilet was a light grey, withan ornate backpiece. A shelf sat above it, holding many knickknacks. Olive rugs and decorative towels were scattered around the room. The walls were painted a dark grey to contrast with the toilet, and Aviana thought the pattern looked like little brown snails. A large mirror rested above the sink, with a few stickers starting to peel off of it. She checked the cabbinet beneath the sink, but it was completely empty. _Weird... I thought there would at least be some cleaners, or soap..._

Shrugging, she went back out into the hall. She found towels and washcloths in a closet at the end of the hall, and had just turned to go back to the bathroom when she ran into something. "Oh! My apologies, child! I should have told you I was here sooner, I know wy footsteps are quite light!" Toriel apologized quickly. "Uh, i-it's fine," Aviana muttered, looking at the ground. She really hoped her nest of hair would hide enough of her face for Toriel not to notice she'd been crying. Sadly, luck didn't seem to be on her side. "Child? Have... Have you been crying? Did you have a nightmare or something?" Aviana bit her lip. She had a choice: lie and hope she believed it... or talk and lift even more weight off her heart. She decided on the latter.

"N-no. I didn't," she admitted. "But, um, I kind of need a bath, as you can probably tell, so... Do you think I could do that first?" Toriel gave her a worried look but nodded. "Of course. Take your time, Aviana," she said. "In the mean time, I will make you a proper lunch. Yesterday's of snail pie may have tasted good, but it is not the most healthy." It was obvious shed rather talk now, but she didn't want to push Aviana either. Aviana already liked her better as a mom. "Ah, but I think perhaps I should see if I have anything for you to wear first. I will compare your clothes to what I have before washing them." Aviana nodded and went back to the bathroom, where she would spend almost two hours soaking in the tub, stalling her explanation of what had happened to her... and what had been happening to her her whole life.


	5. In the Basement

Almost a week had passed since Aviana told Toriel her life's story. Things had gone great- after Toriel's fit of anger was over. A whole building been had burnt to the ground, terrifying the monsters nearby. She'd clearly never heard of child abuse before, and it had infuriated her. Aviana blamed herself for the reaction at first, but Toriel sternly told her never to blame herself for anything ever again. Nothing would ever be her fault; she was only so critical because of her past, and she needed to let go of all of her past to move forward. After that, Aviana had felt slightly more confident in herself.

Toriel had been nothing but kind, if a bit overprotective. Aviana had learned how to make Toriel's (apparently) famous butterscotch-cinnamon pie, had learned every interesting snail fact there was, read a good three-forths of Toriel's books (which was a lot), seen the goat monster's favorite bug-hunting spot (because apparently bugs are able to fall through the barrier too?), helped out in Toriel's garden, and befriended almost every monster in the Ruins. The one exception was, of course, Whimsun. She could finally say a few comforting words to the creatures, but they were still too afraid to say anything back or stay for too long. And of course, Aviana had started to call Toriel "mom"- it started as "mother", but Toriel insisted on just "mom." It was all so... _nice._

But at the same time it all felt so wrong. Like she shouldn't even be there. She'd mentioned the feeling to Toriel, but the monster assured her it was just her low self-esteem. But Aviana didn't think so. It wasn't her usual feeling of guilt or awkwardness. It was like... like she had been forced into doing something wihtout even realizing it. And she started to strange dreams, though she could never remember them. She'd always wake up in a cold sweat and with a pounding headache. It always made her uncomfortable and hard to fall back asleep. Heck, some nights she couldn't. It was fine for a while, though; Aviana had managed to hide and deal with her problems fairly well. Until the day after a sleepless night, when Aviana fell asleep in the middle of gardening.

"Child? Aviana!" Toriel called worriedly. Aviana jumped and sat up. Her face hurst from the end of the tool her face had fallen onto. "Are you feeling well? Have you been sleeping well?" she asked. Aviana hesitated before admitting she hadn't slept well since the first night. "Aviana, why didn't you tell me of this? I could have solved this problem long ago!" Toriel chided. She sighed and stood up, then helping up Aviana. "Come, I know a sleeping spell that should help. I can double up on it since it is late, if you like." Aviana said nothing, letting herself be led back to their house. When they stepped inside, Aviana looked at the stairs instantly. She would always stare at them whenever she would come inside, and she always felt like asking about them. Today, the urge to ask was stronger than ever, so she did.

"Mom, where do those stairs lead?" Aviana asked. Toriel stopped in her tracks. "Ah... I was afraid you would ask that some day," she said. "To be honest, I'm surprised it took you so long. Why did it?" She was stalling, and Aviana didn't take the bait. "Mom, what's down there?" she insisted. Toriel's shoulders fell. "Ah... It is just our- my basement, child. There is nothing but boxes and dust down there," she explained. "Oh? Then why do you go down there so often?" It was true; she vanished downstairs for hours at a time almost every day.

"I... I-I am trying to clean it up, of course. I was going to surprise you, but... I'm planning on building... on building... a-an art room!" Toriel was a terrible liar. "Really? So then, you just live in the Ruins? There are _no_ other monsters down here? Or do they live in your basement?" She hadn't mean to sound snarky or snappy, but the expression on Toriel's face told her she had. "D-do not use that tone with me! Now, come on. You need to sleep," she said. Her voice had cracked ever so slightly. "Mom, come on. Just tell me! Why can't I see the rest of the Underground? I mean, I love it here in the Ruins, but... It gets pretty old and cramped once you're used to it, don't you think?" They stood in silence for a minute. "Stay here. I must do something," Toriel finally whispered. She quickly went to the stairs and went down them two at a time- not running, but definitely not walking either.

Aviana didn't even realize she was following her until she was at the bottom of the staircase. It certainly wasn't a basement; it was far too long and narrow to be. "Mom!" she called, running to catch up with her. "Mom, what are doing?!" she demanded. Toriel stopped in her tracks. "There is a door at the end of this hallway. It is a... one-way exit from this place," she said. _One-way, huh? Guess that explains why she doesn't want me to leave..._ "I... I am going to destroy it," Toriel said before walking forward again. Aviana followed her. "What!? Mom, there's no reason to do that!" she shouted. Toriel said nothing. Aviana tried calling her by name, but the monster still didn't respond. Eventually, the pair came to the door. "Aviana, you naive child... If you leave, I cannot protect you. They... No... _**Asgore**_... will kill you," she explained, voice wavering."Please. Just let me do what I must and go upstairs. I will forget about all of this, and we can stay here, together, happily."

"No! I won't!" Aviana shouted defiantly. "I don't know why you're so against me leaving, but it can't be that bad. Even if it is, can't you just come with me? You have to know how small this place feels! It's not right for me to grow up here, and it's not right for you to stay here any longer!" Toriel simply sighed. "If you are truly so set on leaving me... Then you will prove to me you can survive. If you are ready, we can begin now." Aviana's heart felt like breaking in two. She didn't want to hurt Toriel, and she didn't want to leave her. She had no idea why she felt so intent on leaving, either, but something about staying just felt... wrong. Besides everything she told Toriel, there was still that constant unease about being here. She had to go, and she told Toriel that. "Then prepare yourself..." Toriel said. That familiar tug in her chest from Flowey's battle returned, and soon her soul was in front of her again. The area around her faded to black again, too, so that all Aviana could see waas her soul and Toriel.

The barrage of fire attacks surprised Aviana, and she was quickly taken down because of that shock.


	6. Hearing Things

Aviana sat upright, terrified and gasping for breath. She patted herself down frantically, serching for burns, but the smell of burning flesh faded away quickly, as did the sensation of being on fire. It took a few more minutes for her to realize she was still in her room, totally unharmed. _What the...? Th-this can't be right... I know I was just d-downstairs... t-trying to convince Toriel t-to let me leave..._ Aviana thought. She started to shake. _A-all that fire... Why did she u-use so much fire...?_

 _ **Idiot. It's because she doesn't care for you, obviously. She never did. You were just fooling yourself, just like before.**_ Aviana gripped at her hair. No, no, that couldn't be true...! _**But it is... You're pathetic. Who would**_ **ever** _ **love someone like you, who can never see the truth? She'd be better off of you were dead.**_ Aviana closed her eyes and tightened her grip, tears falling from her eyes. _It's not true, it's not true, it's not true, it's..._ Suddenly, s final memory flashed in her mind: Toriel's horrified face when she realized Aviana wasn't experienced in fighting to dodge all of her attacks. She opened her eyes, tears stopping almost instantly.

 _ **Lies LIES! She wanted to fight you!**_ No, she really didn't. She had sounded so... sad, and disappointed- like she might start crying soon. Clearly not the voice of someone _wanting_ to fight... Wait. Speaking of voices... the one trying to convince her Toriel hated her sounded slightly higher pitched than Aviana's. The girl sat up and looked around. "H... Hello?" she called quietly. She got no response. Frowning, she got up and turned on the light, glancing around the room just to make sure no one was there. When she saw no one, Aviana shrugged and turned the light back off. She slipped back into bed and closed her eyes. Maybe if she could just get some decent sleep that dream wouldn't come true... Though she got the feeling that somehow she would end up in that basement someday anyway.

OOoOOoOOoOO

Aviana was helping Toriel in the garden when something dawned on her: maybe she hadn't drempt the fight against Toriel. It would certainly explain why everything, aside from feeling more alert thanks to sleeping, had been going the same as in her dream. Toriel made pancakes for breakfast, read in the living room while Aviana played games on the cell phone Toriel had given her, then gone shopping in the market. When she came home, lunch had been a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. After that, she had asked Aviana to help her in the garden. It was _exactly_ the same as the dream- Toriel quoted herself word-for-word! It was... disturbing. So when they finally went home, Aviana chose not to say anything.

In her room, Aviana was changing into her sleeping outfit when the voice returned. _**I think I can help with your conundrum,**_ it said. Aviana jumped and looked around frantically. _**Hehe... There's no reason for you to waist you time searching for me; you'll never find me. But you don't need to fear me... not**_ **yet** _ **anyway...**_ Aviana couldn't surpress the shiver that tone created. _ **Just trust me. You want answers, don't you? Well, I'm afraid I ca't be of much help... not for long, at least. But I could talk to you for hours if you do one little thing.**_ Aviana hesitated. "Why should I trust you?" she finally asked. "I don't know who you are... or how you're talking to me."

 _ **Because, I'm like you. Well, I used to be. I had the power to save, load, and reset, just like you do now. Though I never used it ery much, I very well could have at any moment.**_ "Save, load... What the heck are you talking about?" Aviana asked. The voice chuckled. _**Like I said, I can't talk long. Remember how quickly I vanished last night? I'm having a hard time maintaining our connection for this long. So listen: go out to M- Toriel's garden. You know the yellow flowers she has? Not the shorter ones like you fell on- the tall ones with small petals?**_ "Yeah- they're buttercups. What about them?" _**You'll need them- all of them. Once you've picked them all, come back here and crush them up finely. Then put them in some tea and drink them.**_

"Again- no reason to trust you," Aviana remineded them. She was met with silence, so she sighed and finished changing. When she did, she stepped out into the hall. She hesitated at the door. The voice had sounded pretty insistant... Aviana bit her lip and glanced into the living room. Toriel was busy making dinner, it sounded like... She'd have to sneak past her to get to the tea later, but she could easily slip out now. After another minute of thinking, Aviana opened the door and quietly made her way to the garden. She found the buttercups- they were in the very back, in a seperate patch. Aviana never understood why- and picked all of them. There weren't very many, only about ten, but hopefull it would be enough to... Aviana paused as she realized the voice had never explained exactly what would happen. Ah well, she'd already started. Might as well finish and see, right? Besides, if the voice was telling the truth, Aviana could just... restart the day again? Or whatever?

She shook her head and made her way back to the house. Once inside, she went to the kitchen, hiding the flower behind her back. Surprisingly, Toriel was nowhere in sight, and a pot was sitting off to the side of the stove. Was it already finished, or...? Aviana decided not to think about it, instead quickly moving the stool Toriel had to help her reach things over below one of the cabinets and found the tea plus a cup. She filled the cup and brought it to the living room, sticking it in the fireplace. The fire wasn't extremely hot, Aviana had come to find, but it was still pretty warm. Hopefully warm enough to make tea, because if not, Aviana had no idea how to do this without Toriel finding out.

... Wait, why _was_ she doing this!? Couldn't she just ask Toriel to make tea, then add the flowers when she wasn't looking? _Whatever, I'm already here_ , Aviana thought, slightly annoyed with herself. After a few minutes, Aviana took the cup out and put the tea bag in. She went to her room to let it soak. While waiting for that, Aviana started to crush the flowers as much as possible with the toy knife she'd found a few days ago. Even after that, she still had to use her fingernails to cut up some of the bigger pieces. Once she thought the tea was done, she sprinkled in the flowers and hesitantly took a sip. She almost spit it out. So bitter...! She forced herself to finish it, though. Whatever was going to happen, the voice obviously saw as worth the taste. Once she'd finished it off, Aviana sat still and waited.

It was about ten minutes later, when she was ready to give up that she felt something. Her head was starting to hurt, and she felt dizzy. She heard and felt her stomach gurgle in protest. It quickly evolved into intense nasuea and a migraine, plus the world spinning all around her. Panicking, Aviana tried to run to Toriel for help, or at least stand, but her body was numbing so quickly. It was a matter of seconds before everything went dark.

OOoOOoOOoOO

Aviana's eyes shot open. She was sweating and short of breath, the world still shaking slightly. She sat up and looked around. _A... A nightmare?_ she wondered. _**Don't you mean a**_ **dream?** _ **AhahAhahAHaHahaHahAHAhAhaHa!**_ Aviana hugged herself as a chill ran down her spine. _**You're so STUPID! Do you REALLY think I'd ever help YOU!? It's like I said: you're too pathetic to care for!**_ Aviana called for Toriel, trying her hardest to ignore the nisane laughter echoing in her head. After just a few moments, Toriel showed up at her door, looking groggy but still ready to attack anything she saw. "What is it? What happened, Asriel?" she asked. Aviana opened her mouth, but froze when she realized Toriel had tensed almost immediately after asking that. Even the laughter had stopped after what Toriel said. "I... I'm sorry, I..." Toriel stuttered, suddenly looking wide awake. "I didn't mean..."

"I-it's fine, To- um, Mom. I, um, just had a nightmare. I shouldn't have even called you, it's dumb," Aviana said quickly. "Just, uh, go back to bed." Toriel looked down and nodded before closing the door. Aviana laid back down and tried to fall asleep. It took a few hours, thanks to to what the voice said and Toriel calling her by some other, strange name.


	7. Who is Asriel?

Aviana woke up to dead silence. She sat up slowly and listened carefully. Usually she could hear something because of how quiet the Ruins were, but now she didn't hear anything. Had Toriel gone to the garden without her, or...? She changed into another shirt and shorts and went into the hall. Stil no sound. Toriel definitely wasn't here...

Aviana went out to the garden, where she found... nothing. Toriel wasn't there either. Worried, Aviana turned to leave when she realized there was a new flower in the garden. She quietly opened the gate and got a little closer. It was the one from before- the one that tried to attack her. She suddenly felt the urge to run, but then she noticed something: he was crying. It was silent and not very heavy, but he was definitely crying. "Um, M-Mr. Flower?" His head whipped around in shock, startling Aviana slightly. "What the hell do y-" he started. He blinked. "Oh. _You._ " He made it sound as if Aviana was the bane of his existence. "You're the one I tried to kill last week."

"Uh... Yeah, that's me," Aviana confirmed. The flower looked confused. "So then... Why are you so close to me now? I could easily pull out your soul again and kill you," he threatened. It didn't sound very convincing. "Well... I saw you crying. I wanted to see what was wrong," Aviana admitted. He still seemed absolutely baffled. "But... Why? I _tried to kill you_ ," he reminded her again. Aviana couldn;t find an answer, so she just shrugged. The flower sighed. "Well... It's nothing. So just leave already," he spat, turning around. Something told Aviana she should listen, but instead she sat down. "No. Tell me what it is." The flower glared at her and sighed again, heavier this time. "First, my name is _not_ 'Mr. Flower.' I told you last time it was Flowey," he said. "Second... It's nothing you can help with, so why bother?"

"Why? Why not?" Aviana asked. "Even if I can't help, Toriel taught me that even just talking helps you feel better." Flowey tensed. "Yeah...? Well what does she know," he growled. "Flowey, come on. Just tell me. I'm sure-"

"You're not sure of anything!" Flowey snapped suddenly. "This is just- pointless, okay!? Theere's nothing you or anyone else can do!" he shouted. "That can't be true," Aviana insisted. "Oh yeah!? Well _you_ don't know _anything!_ You don't know who I am or- or who I was! So just stay away from me!" With that, he popped underground, leaving Aviana alone in the garden. As she stood up, she wondered what she said wrong, or if he was just always like that.

 _ **Of course you said something wrong. Everything you say is wrong.**_ "Oh joy, just as I was enjoying the silence..." Aviana muttered, standing up. The voice fake gasped. _**I never! Here I thought we were friends.**_ Aviana laughed bitterly as she closed the gate behind her. "Please! You _killed_ me!" _**Ah-ah.**_ **You** _ **killed**_ **yourself.** _ **I only gave you the means to do so.**_ "Yeah? Well that still counts in my books," Aviana said. "So, are you just going to torment me, or can you tell me where Toriel is?" _**Does telling you how pathetic you are count as tormenting?**_ Aviana rolled her eyes and started walking back to the house. She was tempted to search for the monster- her height would make her relatively easy to find- but decided instead to fix breakfast. Wherever she was must've been important for one reason or another, so Aviana wanted to surprise her.

OOoOOoOOoOO

"Good morning, my child." Aviana jumped so hard she almost dropped the pan. "Oh goodness, I-I am so sorry, Aviana! I really must stop doing that..." Toriel apologized. Aviana was about to tell her it wasn't a problem when she started talking again. "I also apologize for making you have to cook your own breakfast. I... I got... lost." Aviana frowned. "Lost? I thought you of all monsters would know the Ruins by now," she said. "Ah, not lost in the Ruins- lost in thought, I meant. In memories," Toriel corrected. She sounded so... sad. Aviana turned off the stove as the last of the pancakes finished. They didn't look great, so she'd have to hope their flavour made up for that.

"Oh. Well, it's really no problem; I'm used to cooking for myself." She froze the instant those words left her mouth. Why had she said that!? Toriel worried about her enough as it was and oh gosh she was looking at her funny _new topic!_ "S-so, uh, where were you? I went out to the garden but you weren't there," Aviana blurted. From the way Toriel's face fell, Aviana felt terrible for bringing it back up. "I was at the tree- the large one just before the entrance to the rest of the city. There is... someone burried beneath it," she explained, eyes tearing up slightly. Aviana couldn't stop herself from asking. "Oh... Are they that 'Asriel' you mentioned earler?" She was nervous about asking and had a strong feeling Toriel didn't want to talk about it, but she was curious.

Toriel sighed and sat down. Aviana brought over the plates she had fixed. "No, no... Asriel was my son. Monsters... Our bodies cannot persist after death, just as our souls can't. When we die, our bodies turn to dust. So Asriel..." Toriel swallowed hard. "It is not Asriel. The one I burried was a human child- a young girl I adopted after she fell down here. She was actually around your age, I think. She... No one is entirely sure what happened. If she was allergic to something, or if she caught a human illness... Nobody knows." She clased her eyes. "It does not matter now, I suppose. Chara is gone now." Aviana looked at the floor. "I'm sorry for bringing it up," she said. Toriel took a deep breath before standing again. "It is fine, child. You've shared your struggles with me, so it's only fair that I do the same," she said. "I thank you for making breakfast, but... I think I'm more in the mood to read. Excuse me." She left quickly, before Aviana could say anything else.

Aviana looked back at the food she made. She wasn't really hungry anymore either. She sighed and sat down. She didn't mean to depress Toriel like that... She should've just been quiet and let Toriel tell her what she wanted when she wanted to. _Maybe I should just... go back,_ she thought. It didn't seem like Toriel remembered the resets, so it would mean she could have a happy day again, like she usualy did. After thinking it over for a few minutes, Aviana closed her eyes and focused. She pictured herself back in her room, back in bed. There was a sudden tightening in her chest, and she saw something that almost startled her into re-opening her eyes. There was a menu in front of her, like a video game: CONTINUE and RESET were the only options she had. She moved a hand in real life and saw one appear in front of her as well. Her hand hovered over RESET for a second before feeling it wasn't the right button So instead, she hit CONTINUE, and suddenly she could no longer smell pancakes.


	8. Practive Makes Perfect

Aviana was grateful to see the dimly lit ceiling when she opened her eyes again. She really hadn't wanted to die again just to reset back to here... As expected, she could still remember the last- what would she call these? The last... "trial", she decided- trial, but she really hoped Toriel couldn't. She never seemed to before, but that didn't mean... _something_ couldn't make her remember one of these times.

 _ **You aren't implying**_ **I** _ **would do something like that, are you?**_ "Oh? And you wouldn't?" Aviana asked. _**No!**_ the voice denied, sounding highly offended. "Really now? Why not?" _**Because...! Because, uh...**_ There's a pause. _**I... I may not have a soul any more, but I used to. I was... pretty close with her. And with all my memories I... I just can't hurt her that way. Not again...**_ Aviana blinked as she got an idea. "So then.. are you-?" _**Yes, yes... I'm Chara. The first human that ever fell down here.**_ "But... how is that possible? Shouldn't you be... _dead?_ " Aviana asked. _**Well... I don't know, honestly. Maybe it's because I died here in the Underground? And something with the barrier is trapping my spirit here?**_ "I've heard ghosts ususally appear because they have unfinished business," she suggested. _**Yeah, I know, but... There's a ghost that comes to the Ruins sometimes- I think you've seen him? The one that's always sad and crying.**_ "Yeah, Napstablook, I think his name was." _**Yeah, him. He's just another species of monster, so I doubt he's back for any sort of vengence or anything. Plus... I'm not**_ **exactly** _ **a ghost.**_ "Wait... not a ghost? But you clearly aren't alive... So then, what are you?" There was no answer.

Shrugging, Aviana got out of bed and dressed. While she did, she carefull considered her options. Based on what she'd one so far today, she only really had two: confront Toriel again, or try to comfort Flowey. Even if it had been a few... trials since she fought Toriel, she was still nervous at the idea. At the very least, she knew what her first attack looked like. Flowey did seem to be the safer option... And besides, if she managed to talk him out of his depression, she might be able to try and find a way to save that prgress and then move on to Toriel later. With that in mind, she readied herself for the day.

OOoOOoOOoOO

Aviana sat up in bed. That hadn't turned out how she'd hoped... She'd have to change her words and try again.

OOoOOoOOoOO

Aviana sat up in bed. That hadn't gone much better... At least he'd told her _something_ that time, even if it was almost nothing... She'd just have to try again.

OOoOOoOOoOO

Aviana jolted upright in bed, panting. Okaaaay... He was _not_ a hugger. Time to try again.

OOoOOoOOoOO

Aviana sighed as she sat up. So close, but he still pushed her away... She'd try one more time before she gave up.

OOoOOoOOoOO

Aviana opened her eyes and laid still. Well... apparently he knew what she was doing, because he mentioned something about "being tired of this" before attacking and telling her to just leave him alone. Flowey really was out of the question. Time to take on Toriel again, then...

OOoOOoOOoOO

Aviana jumped as she woke up, sweating and panting. It took her a few minutes of terror to realize she was back in her room again. So those words hadn't done anything... Aviana would have to try again.

OOoOOoOOoOO

Aviana jumped as she woke up, heart beating rapidly. She calmed down quicker than before, and she sat up. Turns out that wasn't a good idea either... At least she was starting to get good at dodging her attacks.

OOoOOoOOoOO

Aviana sat up quickly in bed, ears ringing. So _don't_ bring that up next time. Noted...

OOoOOoOOoOO

Aviana woke up slowly, saddened and upset at herself. Why had she thought it was a good idea to bring up Asriel and Chara? Not only had it depressed Toriel, Aviana forgot Toriel hadn't told her about them yet, so the goat monster had interrogated her later.

OOoOOoOOoOO

Aviana grit her teeth as she woke up. She tore off the blankets and sat up, hands going to her head. That was probably the worst try yet! How was that even possible with how long she'd been trying!? She... _could_ always try the flowers again, make herself seem sick and finally get this day over with... No, it wasn't worth it. But then what could she _do!?_ She didn't want to waste the day! She kicked off the floor and stood up, slamming her door behind her as she left the room. She didn't even care if it woke Toriel- she was _sick and tired_ of reliving this same day! Why couldn't she just get out of it? What was she doing wrong!?

She stopped at the stairs and glared at them, when suddenly an idea came to her. Why not just leave! Toriel was still asleep, surely she could make it out without her noticing. She'd have to leave a note, though, since she didn't want Toriel to worry too much. But she didn't exactly have the time to now, since Toriel would no doubt be coming to see what was wrong. So Aviana closed her eyes and re-started the day again. When she was back, she quickly and quietly began packing a few things. Two spare outfits, the donut she bought from the nice spiders (there's a word commbination she never thought she'd use, but it was true), the toy knife she found a few days ago, and the ribbon she'd found on her way back from visiting Napstablook yesterday. She also decided to grab a slice of Toriel's pie- not the snail pie, but the butterscotch-cinnamon. Surprisingly, she didn't like it quite as much as the snail pies, but it somehow made her feel... _stronger_ than them. Like they were more filling or something.

She snuck into the kitchen and opened the fridge quietly, carefully cutting a slice from the pie. She then wrapped it in papertowels, and quickly did the same for the donut so they didn't get covered with filth. Then she stuck them in her backpack with everything else, and went back to the stairs. She grabbed her shoes, opting against putting them on until after she was downstairs in case they woke Toriel, and then scrawled a note to Toriel explaining that, while she loved Toriel and the Ruins, she felt trapped and suffocated, and she just needed to leave for a while, explore the rest of the Underground. She then darted downstairs and ran to the door. As she stopped in front of it, she felt nervous. It was huge and intimidating, offering a whole new world of possibilities to Aviana. It could bring anything... And such a terrifying yet fascinating idea... filled her with determination to continue forward.

0o0o0o0

Frisk felt an odd sensation in their gut as they climbed the mountain. Were they still too early? No, **he** would have stopped them again by now of that were the case. Was it that somebody else had fallen? No, that wasn't possible; nobody had fallen since many years before Frisk was even born, and nobody ever fell between resets. Why would this time be any different?

... Unless **he** was messing with things again? **He** had only ever done that once before, to force Chara to give control of Frisk's soul back to them. Why would **he** be doing anything now? Well... They never _did_ understand **him**. Frisk vowed to stop trying as they lowered themselves into the Underground once more.

OOoOOoOOoOO

To say things were different would be a gross understatement. Flowey had been nowhere in sight through the entirety of the Ruins, and not a single monster attacked. Instead they all just waved at Frisk- even the Whimsun managed small smiles at them! And then, of course, was the fact that Toriel hadn't been near the entrance checking for humans like she usually did every day. It was... unnerving. At least all the monsters that were around proved this wasn't Chara's doing, but something still could have happened to Toriel.

After knocking on the door, the goat woman thankfully opened the door. She looked... sad? Her expression changed to one of shock upon noticing Frisk, but she had very clearly been upset by something. "My goodness! You must have fallen down! The one day I don't go out to check..." she said. "I'm very sorry, it's just... another child was just here, but... she left, leaving a note saying that... that she was not as happy here as I thought."

"Um... It's alright," Frisk reassured her. "Really, it is. All the other monsters here seem really nice." Toriel smiled fondly. "Yes... Aviana was so kind to them all," she said. She then cleared her throat. "Ah, but never mind that. It is colder than usual out, and you have a scrape on you knee. Come on in, and wait in the living room. I have some bandages in my bathroom, I'll be right back," she said before hurrying off. Frisk stepped inside and closed the door behind themselves. So the kid's name was Aviana? The name sounded almost familiar... Wait. Didn't they go to school with a girl by that name? Yeah, she'd been missing for a week now; she'd apparently run away after he mother came home drunk and beat her- it had been all over the news lately.

So this is where she'd been? In the Underground? But why now of all timelines would she-? Oh. Right. Frisk forgot for a minute there- even with them that sometimes happened. So **he** did something to convince her to run... And now she was down here with Frisk. She seemed nice enough... but so had Chara at first. She could cause trouble later on if she wasn't as nice as she appeared to be. Or if her abuse finally caught up with her and she snapped. Or if Chara got a hold of Aviana. Or-

Okay. So there was a lot that could go wrong thanks to this new factor. Frisk didn't want to leave Toriel while she seemed to be already in a prety bad state, but... They really needed needed to follow Aviana, just to make sure nothing went horribly wrong. So, they quickly left- without even grabbing any of Toriel's delicious pie.


	9. A Wild Skeleton Appears

Aviana went through the smaller door just past the large one, shivering as a shock of cold air hit her. To her great surprise, the ground was covered in snow. Wasn't it spring up top? But the snow looked to be two inches deep at least. It seemed the Underground had a messed up perception of the seasons. She shook her head. Now wasn't the time to think about that- it was freezing outside, so she'd have to find somewhere to stay fast.

She started walking towards what appeared to be a bridge of some kind. She barely noticed the snap of a large branch behind her. Her head whipped around and, sure enough, a tree limb was shattered on the ground as if it were nothing. She got a sinking feeling in her gut and quickly dug the toy knife from her bag before continuing. After a few more minutes of walking in the dead silence, she heard something else behind her. She spun around, knife at the ready (though really it probably wouldn't do much) and came face to face with... absolutely nothing. Confused, she looked around and managed to spot a footprint on the ground, to the side of the path- a footprint much larger than hers...

Now thoroughly terrified, her shaking intensified. She was nearly sprinting for the bridge when she turned back around. Just when she had reached it and thought she was in the clear, somebody spoke. "hey pal," they said, slowly and far too deep to be natural. She shrieked and spun around again, slashing at the air behind her with her eyes closed. When she opened them, she found an utterly horrified-looking skeleton holding up his hands and sweating(?). It looked as though he'd taken a step back, too. "w-woah there, kid! take it easy!" he cried. Aviana eyed him cautiously for another second before lowering her weapon- er, toy. "S-sorry..." she muttered.

The skeleton blinked and chuckled slightly, though it was clearly forced. "uh, it's _snow_ problem. _icy_ now that you're too _shaken up_ for me to sneak up on," he said. Aviana stared blankly at him as the puns set in. _Please no..._ she thought in despair. The skeleton seemed to somehow know her thought process had shifted and smirked, small lights appearing in his sockets. "what's the matter? not one for puns? s'okay, not even i can _stomach_ my own jokes sometimes." Aviana couldn't hold back the snort at that ridiculous pun. "hey, look. maybe i was wrong. guess the only way i'll _snow_ is if i keep it up," he said, finally relaxing into a more comfortable position. "No," Aviana groaned, despite the grin on her face. "but you're smiling," the skeleton pointed out. Aviana merely huffed and crossed her arms, smile growing.

The skeleton chuckled. "so anyway." He held out a hand. "name's sans. sans the skeleton." Aviana took it... and imediately regretted her choice as a wet farting sound cut through the forested area. She narrowed her eyes at Sans as she drew her hand back. His smile took up almost all of the lower half of his... face? skull? and she could hear him trying to choke back his own laughter. "M-my name is A-Aviana," she introduced, deciding to ignore the prank. "cool. so you're a human, right?" Aviana nodded. "that's hilarious." Aviana failed to see the joke, but she didn't really feel like protesting right now. She'd been standing still for so long the cold felt more intense and was starting to numb her.

There was amoment of silence before Sans talked again. "so, uh, i'd love to give you my speech- i have this _awesome_ one planned out- but you... don't really look so hot," he said. Aviana narrowed her eyes. Was that supposed to be a pun, or was that just poor word choice...? "here, take my hand," Sans said, holding out his left hand. "s'warm back at my place." Aviana eyed his hand in suspicion. "what's that look for? i prank you once and you never trust me again," Sans said, clearly still proud of said prank. "I-it's not th-that," Aviana said. "W-well, not j-just that... Wh-why do I need to t-take your hand to g-g-go to your house? C-can't you... Can't you j-just lead m-me?" Sans hummed before answering. "let's just say i know a shortcut. and trust me, you'll wanna hold on tight, or you might get lost." Aviana was still thoroughly confused, but she grabbed his hand anyway. Even if he loved puns, he seemed trustworthy... somewhat.

Suddenly, the world faded into blackness as a falling sensation gripped her body. In a matter of (possibly) seconds, a living room was created around them. Aviana's hand slipped from the skeleton's as soon as it was formed, and she stumbled forward, almost falling until she found a couch. The world was spinning, and she felt naseous and oddly tired. "uh... whoops," Sans said. "guess i should've warned ya my shortcuts can be pretty _dizzying_ ," he said, laughing nervously. When Aviana didn't react, his smile fell. "um... seriously, though, y'okay kid?" Aviana attempted to mumble out a "yeah", but the floor rushed up to meet her face before she could manage. Combined with her newfound fatigue, the overwhelming temperature difference was too much for the tired human.

Sans winced when the girl hit the ground. "damn... guess i _really_ should'a warned ya," he mumbled. He walked up to her and quickly checked her for vital signs. Not only did he find them, but she even mumbled something while he was feeling for a pulse. Sans sighed in relief and used his magic to lift her up. This would be tough to explain to Papyrus... but this human clearly wasn't in any condition to go through the Underground yet.


	10. Chara's Situation

Aviana woke up slowly and sourly. Her head was pounding and she somehow felt even more exhausted than before. She didn't move for a good twenty minutes before deciding to give up trying to sleep more. As she kicked off the blanket in annoyance, she noticed she wasn't at Toriel's anymore, or even in a bed. She was on a couch in a very... _uniquely_ colored living room. The carpeting had blue and purple zig-zag lines, and the walls were a deep magenta. The wood trim along the floor had been painted a bright orange, and the couch she was on was a lime green. Whose house _was_ this?

It took her a minute to remember the skeleton she'd met... yesterday? _Ugh... I really need to start sleeping normally,_ Aviana thought as she sat up. _Wait... Why_ was _I sleeping? I don't remember laying down..._

 _ **That's because you literally**_ **fell** _ **asleep! It was pretty entertaining!**_ "Hello again, Chara..." Aviana mumbled. "Hey, hold on. Where have you been lately? You haven't said a word since, like... I dunno, ten resets maybe?" she asked quietly. She then noticed a small table next to the couch she was on, with a note sitting on top of a book. She picked up the note.

 _my room: right from the stairs_

 _bro's room: in front of the stairs. can't miss it_

 _kitchen: room next to the tv_

 _bathroom: just in front of the stairs_

 _living room: you're in it. y'know, unless someone stole our couch while we were asleep. but then i guess you couldn't be reading this, huh? unless they stole the table too_

Aviana smirked and set the note back down. _**Hello!**_ She jumped. _**Do you not actually care what I was doing, or do you**_ **actually** _ **just have the attention span of a dog? Honestly, listen to someone when they're talking- especially if**_ **you** _ **asked a question.**_ "S-sorry, I just woke up," Aviana apologized. "And I don't exactly feel great either, so..." Chara sighed. _**Yeah, I know. It's okay, I guess. So anyway, my answer was: I was here, in Snowdin. Or, uh, as "here" as I can get.**_ Aviana frowned. "What the heck does that mean?"

 _ **Well... I can't exactly leave this place I'm in. It's sort of... I guess the best way to describe this place is a dark, infinite room? But it has a "floor" and one "wall" that has a "window" on it. There's no way to break the window, but I can move it around to look at different parts of my- of...**_ **your** _ **world. I can communicate with people through my window if I shout- though only one at a time. If I really focus, I can force the window open for a little while so I can interect with objects.**_

Aviana silently let that sink in. Chara was trapped somewhere else, then? She sounded so sad explaining it. Aviana may not like the girl very much, but... she had lived in the Underground before. She had a family, she had friends... She could have had a full life. But now she was... she was... "Hey, uh, Chara. You never answered my question about whether or not you were dead," Aviana whispered. _**Oh, right. That's actually what I was researching, since I didn't actually know the answer. I remember dying, but this isn't at all what I expected or what I'd ever been taught.**_

 _ **I looked through all of Toriel's books first. Since she had so many, I thought there was a chance one of them had the answer. When none of them did, I came to Snowdin to look through the library. I was ready to give up all hope and try to find something in the lab's books- don't ask, you'll get there eventually- when I found it. It was old and buried in the back of a bookcase, but it was there. A book titled "Ghosts and How They Form." In short, some humans- and even a few monsters- are so determined to continue living when they die that they get stuck in limbo. Of course, reasons for the determination to live vary, but most of them are something along the lines of not fulfilling something in life, or not living as long as they want to. Anyway, it takes a long time, but if they can hold out in limbo for so long- I think it said fifty years for monsters and one hundred for humans- then they'll become a ghost. It went into deatil about what happens with the soul after that, but I don't think it's really relevant.**_

Aviana sat in stunned silence. Limbo? A hundred years? Determination? Why was her head suddenly hurting so much worse? "Uh... I'm... so sorry," she eventually muttered. _**Oh, ther's no need to be.**_ Aviana blinked. Chara suddenly sounded so cheerful. _**It shouldn't be too long before I'm a ghost. Then I could always just... possess some object to become corporeal.**_ "Not long? Whene did you die?" Aviana asked. _**Um... I don't remember the exact year anymore... Some time in the thirties, I think? And the last kid that fell down here said it was the late 1970s not long before they died, and that was a long time ago.**_ "Th-the 30s? Holy shiiiiiiiiiiiii..." _**Please, from here I've already heard every swear word ever at least once.**_ "Holy shit, that's... that's insane. How are you still a kid?" Aviana asked. _**I can only guess it has something to do with this place.**_ She really did sound just as confused.

"Well... Can you tel me any more anout your life? When were you born, where, why did you climb-?" _**Let me stop you there. I... I'm not so comfortable talking about my life. And I can't exactly remember much by now- it is closing in on a hundred years now, after all. Besides, you won't be alone forever, and I don't want any of them to think you're crazy.**_ "Any of them? Who?" _**... You'll see. For now it would probably be best if we just stopped talking. Like I said, I have to yell for you to hear me.**_ "Right... Okay," Aviana said, standing up. She stretched briefly before using the bathroom. On her way out, she ran into something much thinner and much taller than her.


	11. Meeting the Other Two

"OH GOODNESS, I'M SORRY HUMAN!" a voice boomed. Aviana jumped at the sudden volume. "ER, WAIT- NOT HUMAN. ER... WHAT DID SANS SAY YOU WERE AGAIN...?" Aviana blinked and looked up to find... a very, very tall skeleton. He didn't really look like the other one- Sans, Aviana remembered- his face- er, skull was a lot thinner and longer than Sans', and she could clearly see his neck (or was that his spine?), where as Sans didn't seem to have one. Not to mention his outfit had color, where Sans seemed content with black and white with some dark blue. There was white, red, gold, blue... It hurt her eyes a little, actually.

After a few seconds of her brain trying to process the new monster and his noise level, she said, "U-um, no worries. And, uh, I-I am a human, though my name's Aviana." The skelton sighed- or rather he said the word sigh- and his shoulders slumped a bit. "OH, I KNOW THAT. BUT MY BROTHER EXPLAINED TO ME THAT I CAN'T REFER TO YOU AS ONE BECAUSE IT MAY PUT YOU IN DANGER! HE SEEMED WORRIED THAT YOU MIGHT GET HURT," the skeleton explained. "BUT FEAR NOT! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WOULD NEVER STOOP SO LOW AS TO HARM AN UNWELL HUMAN! I MAY BE DEDICATED TO MY WORK, BUT I HAVE STANDARDS! STANDARDS THAT SAY A HUMAN IS NOT FIT FOR CAPTURING IF THEY ARE SICK!"

"Uh... Capture? Capture what exactly?" Aviana asked. "WHY A HUMAN, OF COURSE!" the skeleton- Papyrus, he'd said- answered. "IT WAS AN ORDER FROM THE KING THAT ALL HUMANS THAT FALL DOWN HERE MUST BE SENT TO THE CAPITAL!" A lump formed in Aviana's throat. Well. Toriel had warned her. "I CAN SEE YOU ARE DISTRESSED, HUMAN! BUT THERE IS NOTHING TO FEAR! SO LONG AS NOBODY KNOWS YOU ARE HUMAN, YOU WON'T BE CAPTURED! AND I WILL LEAVE YOU BE UNTIL YOU ARE FEELING BETTER! AND THAT IS A PROMISE!" Aviana frowned. He seemed trustworthy enough... but also very loud, and open about what was on his mind. Would he be able to keep himself from talking about her...? "Um, thanks," she said. "And, uh, you can call me by my name."

Papyrus hummed for a second. "YES, THAT WOULD PROBABLY MAKE THINGS EASIER." Wait... what? "WHAT IS YOUR NAME THEN?" he asked. "Um... Aviana," Aviana answered. _I told you, like, a minute ago...?_ She decided not to voice the second part. It seemed he was just easily distracted. Or maybe he was hard of hearing? It would explain why he was so loud... Plus skeletons don't have ears. But then... how was he hearing at all...?

"AVIANA, HM? THAT'S QUITE AN INTERESTING NAME!" _Heh... You're one to talk, Mr. Font._ "IT'S VERY NICE TO MEET YOU!" Papyrus said, bending over some and extending a hand. "MY NAME IS THE GREAT PAPYRUS! THOUGH YOU ARE WELCOME TO JUST CALL ME PAPYRUS. MOST PEOPLE DO." Aviana took his hand and was surprised by how gently he shook it. For being so flamboyant, he was certainly kind and gentle. "WELL AVIANA, I REGRET TO INFORM YOU THAT I MUST BE OFF TO WORK!" Papyrus said... yelled? "Work? What time is it?" Aviana asked in confusion, looking around for a clock. She found none. Great... It seemed to entire Underground didn't use clocks. Even the cell phone Toriel had given her had no way to measure time on it. Maybe it was just old, though...

"SIX O'CLOCK!" Papyrus beamed. So apparently there was a way to measure time...? Were clocks just rare then, or...? "In the morning? What job do you have?" she asked incredulously. "BUT OF COURSE IN THE MORNING! ONE MUST BE VIGILANT AND DEDICATED TO REMAIN GOOD AT THEIR JOB!" Papyrus said. "AS FOR MY JOB... I AM A SENTRY! WHICH MEANS I MUST WATCH FOR ANY HUMANS THAT COME THROUGH SNOWDIN!" Papyrus pinched his eyebrows(?) together. "WELL, TECHNICALLY, I DON'T _HAVE_ TO BE AT WORK UNTIL EIGHT... UNDYNE HAS CALLED ME SEVERAL TIMES TO TELL ME THIS. BUT THEN... WHAT WOULD I DO IN THOSE EXTRA TWO HOURS?! I CANNOT SIMPLY NAP ALL NIGHT, LIKE MY BROTHER! IT IS A WASTE OF PRECIOUS TIME! WELL, I BEST BE OFF! DON'T WANT TO BE LATE TO MY EARLY SHIFT! IF YOU REQUIRE FOOD, THERE IS LEFTOVER SPAGHETTI IN THE FRIDGE! IT WAS NICE MEETING YOU!"

With that, the tall skeleton cheerfully sprinted outside, forgetting to close the door. Aviana chuckled lightly at his enthusiasm as she closed the door. She barely knew Papyrus, but she got the feeling she'd really like him. Chara chuckled, too, and Aviana almost didn't jump in surprise. She was really getting used to that. _**Yeah, that's Papyrus for you. He's one giant ball of energy.**_ Aviana thought about responding when someone else spoke up.

"Oh, morning. Papyrus wake you up, too?" somebody asked. Aviana blinked and looked in the direction fo the voice, soon spotting someone at the top of the stairs. They had bobbed brown hair that brushed over their shoulders, and they were wearing a long pink-and-blue striped sweater with darker blue pants. They appeared to be around Aviana's age or slightly younger, and they were dragging an oversized stuffed bear behind them. "You're Aviana, right? I'm Frisk. Do you remember me? We go to school together," they explained. Aviana frowned in thought for a moment before realization struck.

"Oh yeah! You're the really smart kid! The thirteen-year-old tenth grader?" Aviana blurted. Even more impressive was Frisk's grade record: straight A's their whole life! Nobody knew how Frisk did it, but they were all but worshipped at school- well, by about half the school. The other half made fun of them and wrote horrible things in the bathrooms. Not like they ever saw, since they always used the nurse's bathroom because of their gender, but it still hurt to know that people would do that.

Frisk flushed and Aviana flet a little bad for not wording that better. "Um, yeah. That's me," they answered. Aviana felt like apologizing, but Frisk started talking again as they walked downstairs. "So, Toriel told me you left pretty suddenly. Why is that?" they asked. Aviana winced. "She's, uh, not too broken up over that, is she? I tired to explain it as nicely as possible..." she said. Frisk paused on the steps. "Define 'broken up.' She's definitely sad, but... I think she'll get over it okay," they said. Frisk continued walking again. "Man... I feel so bad, but... I coulnd't stay there forever; she knew it, too, I could see it every time I- er... every time I brought up leaving," Aviana explained. "Yeah, I know what you mean," Frisk said simply, sounding almost... wistful?"

"So, what brought you down here?" Frisk asked. Aviana tensed slightly, going back to that night. She didn't feel like having this conversation yet, think of something... "Gravity," she said, trying her best to sound sarcastic. Frisk snorted and chuckled. "Someone's sassy in the morning," they said in amusement. Aviana was pretty sure her face could turn any redder... "I meant..." they began, before apparently realizing what was in their hand. "Oh, heh. Didn't even remember grabbing you," they said, holding up the bear. "You can probably tell by the size, but this isn't mine. It's Papyrus'. Said he got it from Santa this past Christmas." Up close, Aviana could tell it was old. An ear and both of its eyes were missing, the leg's stitching was shaky at best, an obvious patch job. And it smelled faintly like old cheese, as if someone had tried to wash it but gave up after hours of scrubbing. "Ugh... Did it come out of a trash can?" she asked. "Uh... something like that," Frisk said, lowering it. Aviana blinked. _I wasn't serious..._

 _ **Yeah, well Frisk is. Where do you think monster get a lot of their stuff? There isn't exactly a near endless supply of materials like there is on the surface.**_ Aviana suddenly felt even worse for the monsters. Not only were they trapped here, but they had to get their... their _everything_ from a dump!? _**Well, not everything, but a lot of things.**_ _That's not much better, Chara!_ Aviana snapped in her head. "Hey!" Aviana jumped. "S-sorry! I just, uh, zoned out for a second there!" she apologized. "Right... It's fine," Frisk said. "So, what I said was... I meant, _why_ are you down here? What were you doing on Mount Ebott?" Aviana looked at the ground. "I... H-have there been no news stories about my disappearance?" she asked quietly. It'd been a month... surely her mother had said something... right? Or the school? Someone?

There was a long pause. "Yes. There have been," Frisk answered simply. They seemed to want a full explanation from Aviana... shit. "And what did they say?" Aviana pushed. She didn't want to explain anything Frisk already knew... assuming they knew anything of the truth, that is. There was another pause, though it was much shorter. "Your mother reported you missing. She said that..." Here it comes... "... she had beat you. It was apparently while she was drunk, and she felt bad, but of course that didn't prevent the arrest." Aviana blinked and stared at Frisk. "She... She actually... admitted to it?" she asked in awe. But why would she...? Now, after all these years...

Frisk's grip on the bear's arm tightened. "I was really hopeful that was made up..." Frisk muttered. "Didn't expect it. Just really, really hoped." So then... did that mean her mother did care? About Aviana? At least a little bit...? "Ah shit. Sorry Aviana, I didn't mean to make you cry," Frisk apologized. Aviana blinked. Yeah, she was definitely crying... She gulped and wiped at her face. "I-it's okay... I just... I-it's nothing," she muttered. Frisk looked like they were going to say something for a moment, but they paused. "Hey... I'm going to see if I can wake up Sans. You must be hungry, right? He knows a good place to eat- er, he said so last night. Plus I'm sure his jokes will _tear_ you right up." Aviana was cofused for a few seconds before it registered. She snorted. "That was _tear_ -able," she said. Frisk chuckled. "Seems like he's already got a hold on both of us. Well, I'll be right back." And back upstairs they went.

Aviana sat in the quiet of the living room. She heard a light knock from upstairs, presumably Frisk knocking on Sans' door. She took this time alone to breathe deeply. She really just felt like curling up into a ball and spending the day drifting in and out of sleep... Maybe waking up once to eat ice cream or something... But she also felt strangely hopeful for once. Sans and Frisk both seemed like good people- even if they were infecting her with puns- and she was starting to have hopes for some semblance of a relationship with her mother. Her life seemed to be turning around pretty quickly... The thought filled her with determination.

A loud rumbling noise cut through her concentration without warning. Aviana was also apparently filled with a strong need to eat...


	12. TITLE REDACTED

The day had been great ever since Sans had woken up.

Sans had indeed known a good place for food, though Aviana had been convinced it was better to let him buy it himself. According to Sans, Frisk might be able to pass an odd monster child, but Aviana looked too much like an adult; she'd be recognized as human instantly. She didn't have time to worry about that for long, as Sans quickly brought back the best damn cheeseburger she'd ever eaten. Granted, she'd only ever had one other cheeseburger before- her mother had been pretty strict on her diet- but still. It was a little greasy, but all in all the burger and fries were great. They all spent the day watching old movies- most of which were Disney, oddly enough- and, in Sans' case, telling terrible jokes. Frisk ended up falling asleep at some point, only waking up when Sans brought lunch- pretty much the same thing, but with onion rings instead of fries. Aviana had never really been a fan of onions, so she was hesitant to eat them. She ended up eating them to be polite, but it had still been pretty obvious she didn't like them.

Papyrus had come home at six and immmediately insisted on making dinner. Aviana was extremely excited to try the skeleton's cooking; if he put half the amount of energy he clearly did into everything else into cooking, it would be amazing, right? Well... He was certainly enthusiatic about it, if the state of kitchen said anything. It wasn't that the spaghetti was _bad_ , just... not the best. Some of noodles were undercooked while others were slightly burnt (how exactly was that even possible?), and the sauce seemed to contain more than just tomatoes and some seasoning- including, at the very least, _glitter_. She even found a few pieces of what was probably the box in her plate. Still, it was edible enough for Aviana to finish her first plate. Though of course she refused any more, claiming she was just "overwhelmed by the taste," which really wasn't a lie.

Now it was night, as signified by the King "turning on the stars"- whatever that meant- and things had quickly gotten tense. "I'm telling you no!" Aviana insisted.

"oh come on! a bed is way more comfortable than a couch!" Sans reasoned. "I-IF THIS IS SUCH A BIG DEAL, WHY DON'T YOU JOIN ME IN MY BED?" Papyrus offered. "No, Frisk is already in there. I don't want to crowd you," Aviana said. "look, kid, it's really not a problem for me-"

"And it's not for me either! So why don't you just stay in your room? I don't want to force you out."

"you're not! i'm offering it to you!" Sans argued. "W-WHY DON'T THE TWO OF YOU SHARE? SANS, YOU DON'T HAVE ANYONE ELSE YOU'RE LOOKING AFTER, DO YOU?" Papyrus interjected. "well, uh... of course not, but-"

"THEN WHY NOT COMPROMISE WITH THAT? IT SEEMS FAR BETTER THAN THE TWO OF YOU FIGHTING ABOUT IT ALL NIGHT!" Sans and Aviana looked at each other hesitantly. "pap, you know my bed's a lot smaller than yours," Sans said. "WELL, YES, BUT IT IS STILL QUITE LARGE! I HAVE SEEN YOU IN IT, THERE IS PLENTY OF ROOM FOR A HUMAN OF AVIANA'S SIZE!"

They knew they were sharing the same concern, but neither of them knew quite how to explain it to Papyrus. Firstly, the two of them just met, and while Papyrus and Frisk may be able to grow close fast, it was a different story for both Sans and Aviana. It wasn't that they didn't like each other; they just weren't sure about calling each other "friends" just yet; More like... "good aquaintances." Yeah. Secondly, they were opposite genders. It wasn't that they thought the other might molest them in the middle of the night, it was just... an uncomfortable thought, because of how they were raised. Papyrus had nothing to worry about, partly because Frisk was gender neutral and a child, but Aviana was pretty close to being an adult, and Sans... well, he was _probably_ an adult. He was tall enough and had a really deep voice. It was a very awkward thought, sharing a bed.

"I... guess I'll take the bed for tonight," Aviana finally said. "I'm not taking no for answer tomorrow, though. We're sharing bed privledges." Sans shrugged, looking slightly more relaxed than after Papyrus' suggestion. "i guess that'll have to work. obviously i can't _rib_ ya enough to make you _bone tired_ enough to accept defeat," he said. "SANS!" Papyrus shouted as the humans groaned. "Alright, nevermind, I'm not taking the bed. In fact, I think I'll take my chances somewhere else. Somebody else has to be okay with humans around here," Aviana said dryly. Sans snorted, but Papyrus' smile fell. It took a few minutes to convince him Aviana was being sarcastic, and that no, she was _not_ leaving.

With the issue resolved, everyone said goodnight and started getting ready for bed.

O~o~o~o~o~O

Aviana blinked and looked around herself. Everything was pure black, but somehow she could still see, and there was some sort of... invisible floor that kept her from falling infinitely. She frowned and walked forward(?), hoping to find someone or something else in this... whatever this place was. After a while, she began to feel tired and sat down(?). She tried to remember why she was here, and where she had been before this, but she drew a blank. What was this place? Why was she here? Who was it she was supposed to meet again?

Wait... Meet someone? Right, she was supposed to meet someone! But... Who? Aviana strained and dug through her memories, but she could only recall a hand with a circle in the middle of it. Who was that? Were they important? Obviously, or else Aviana wouldn't have gone to meet them. But how were hey going to get here? How did _she_ get here, for that matter? She hadn't found anything but mroe darkness in the... amount of time she'd been here. Aviana shook her head and stood back up(?). She was about to open her mouth and call out when something else came back to her.

 _Hello?_ she thought. _Are you there?_ Silence met her. _Hello?_ she insisted, thinking... louder? After a long(?) period of time, the air(?) in front of her began to shift. Soon(?) a white hand was in front(?) of Aviana, a perfectly circular hole carving out most of what would have been is palm. Moments(?) later, a second hand appeared next to it. _Weird... there wasn't a second one last time,_ she thought. _Wait... Last time? What... What last time?_ Before she had much time to think about it, the hands began spelling words in sign language slowly(?). _Hello again, child. I see you have rememberd me... Or at least, you have begun to. Much quicker than before._

 _Um... I guess you could say that?_ Aviana thought in confusion. A sort of chuckle rumbled from all around Aviana, sounding like it was right next to her and miles away at the same time. _Well then. allow me to reintroduce myself- we do not have much time,_ the hands signed. It then occured to Aviana that she couldn't usually understand sign, even the alphabet. She let it slide- most things didn't make sense at the moment. _I am W. D. Gaster. And I am the reason you fell into the Underground._ Aviana's frowned deepened. _So... What, you pushed me or something?_

 _Not exactly, no. I influenced your mother to drink a bit more than usual, and made it so that your back door was open so you could flee once she came home,_ Gaster explained. _You see, I needed someone to come down her and break the cycle of resets- somone who can better control their emotions and their determination. I could find no better option than you- believe me, I looked thouroughly. But I knew how stubborn you were, so I'm afraid I had to intervene a bit._

 _So... So_ you're _why-_

 _I know what you're going to accuse me of, and the answer is no,_ Gaster interrupted. _The ony time I was ever involved in your mother's beating you was that one night. I apologize that she took things so far- I honestly did not know she would- but... you are needed in the Underground. I know you do not understand right now, but you will if you talk to Frisk._ Aviana silently let that all sink in. _Okay... Okay. Then could you tell me more about what this "determination" is? I've heard a lot about it but I still don't understand it. Like, at all._

 _I'm afraid I cannot, child,_ Gaster signed. _I am already straining to keep these hands together for so long. I am not exactly stable anymore. Perhaps you could try remembering to ask Frisk? I suppose technically you could ask anyone about it, but they know more about it than anyone else. Anyone you've met so far, at least. Well, goodbye, Aviana._ Before the girl could react, the hands dissolved into nothingness, and Aviana felt a sudden, sharp pull in her gut, dragging her down(?) through the "floor."

O~o~o~o~o~O

Aviana awoke in a cold sweat, vaguely wondering what determination was. She sat up and used her shirt to wipe off her arms and head a bit, trying to remember what she'd been dreaming. Whatever it was had clearly been terrifying. She decided to splash some water on her face in the bathroom (Sans apparently had his own bathroom. Aviana tried not to think about why he would need one too much). She saw that it was already five in the morning on the clock next to the sink. _Might as well stay up,_ she thought. If Papyrus wasn't already awake, he would be soon. So she shut and locked the door, preparing to take a bath when something occured to her: she had no idea where her backpak was.


	13. The Morning

Aviana sighed as she left the bathroom, disappointed and mildly worried. She not only needed a shower for basic hygiene reasons, but it really helped her to relax. But without her pack- and therefore, a change of clothes- and only one towel left in the bathroom, she really had no choice. So, she made her way downstairsm where she was greated by Papyrus.

"GOOD MORNING HU-! er... AVIANA! I SEE YOU ARE AWAKE!" he boomed. "WOULD YOU LIKE ME TO WARM UP A PLATE OF SPAGHETTI FOR YOU?" he offered. "Um, no thanks Papyrus. I'm, uh... still full from dinner," Aviana lied. She hated to refuse- both because she was hungry and she hated to disappoint the tall monster-, but she didn't think she could handle that first thing in the morning. "I SEE, I SEE... YES, MY COOKING CAN BE QUITE OVERWHELMING THE FIRST TIME! NYEH HEH HEH!" Papyrus declared, looking... actually kind of proud? _Guess that was better than a quick acceptance after all..._ the teen thought in amusement. "So, do you have to work again today?" Aviana asked. "BUT OF COURSE! THIS JOB IS VERY SERIOUS, AFTER ALL!" Papyrus confirmed. "BUT FEAR NOT! MY DAY OFF IS TOMORROW, AND I WILL BE MORE THAN HAPPY TO SPEND TIME WITH YOU AND FRISK! ...If you feel up to it of course?" Aviana almost choked on air from shock. She had no clue he could be that quiet! At least not for more than a word or two!

"Um- of course, Papyrus," Aviana said with a smile. "I don't think I was seriously sick, I already feel a lot better than yesterday." Papyrus brightened at that. "EXCELLENT! THAT MEANS I WILL GET TO SHOW YOU HOW TO BUILD A SNOW PAPYRUS!" he shouted. Aviana blinked up at him. "Snow... Papyrus? Not just a normal snowman?" she asked. Papyrus scoffed. "OF COURSE NOT! THAT WOULD BE _BORING!_ THOUGH IT WOULD ALSO BE MUCH MORE THAN MY BROTHER DID... BUT I STRIVE TO BE THE ABSOLUTE BEST! A MERE SNOWMAN IS FAR TOO SIMPLE FOR THAT!" Aviana smirked at the idea of the skeleton trying to build himself out of snow, but it quickly fell into a grimace. She had never built a snowman in her life; it would be torturous for her to try to make him... Still, she wasn't about to be a downer, so Aviana smiled at him and said, "That sounds like fun!" _And back-breaking labour!_

"GREAT! THEN I SHALL HURRY TO WORK SO THAT TODAY WILL FLY BY AND WE CAN GET TO WORK! ER, PLAY!" Papyrus declared. "GOODBYE, AVIANA!" He then sprinted out the door, once again leaving it to hang open. Aviana chuckled and followed after him to shut it. She then went into the kitchen and grabbed a left over cheeseburger from the fridge. She had just taken her first bite when a knock came from the door and she froze. Who on- or _under_ \- earth would be up at this hour besides Papyrus? Did he wake up one of the neighbors? No, surely they were too far away to be bothered by his volume...

"hey! anyone in there?" Sans' voice called from behind the door. Aviana frowned and made her way to the door. "it's sans! i'd, uh, really rather not try to teleport with this thing. if you can hear me, could you, y'know... let me in?" His voice sounded oddly strained and winded, almost as if he'd been running. Aviana couldn't exactly picture the short skeleton running, though, so... was he carrying something? Either way, she hurried over to the door, where she was greeted by a large plastic bin. She backed away and let Sans carry it in. He set it down as soon as it was clear of the door's swing, leaning against it huffing and sweating. As Aviana closed the door, she wondered how a skeleton could sweat- or breathe, for that matter...

"Um... You okay? And what's in that thing?" Aviana asked. Sans held up a finger to indicate he needed a minutes, and after that minute passed, Sans took a deep breath and stood up straight again. "this," Sans began, "is some stuff you'll need if you ever wanna go out in public down here. not that you have to, of course. just thought you wouldn't like bein' trapped inside for however long you're staying." "Oh. Okay. That's nice of you, thanks," Aviana said. "But, um... Where did you get that? And when?" Sans shrugged. "doesn't really matter," he answered vaguely. "what does matter is if you know what you wanna dress as today," he said. Aviana narrowed her eyes at him for a second before relaxing her gaze. _I know avoidance when I hear it, Sans..._

"Um, to be honest I hadn't thought about it," Aviana admitted. "well than, better start diggin', huh?" Sans said, popping the lid off the container. Aviana walked over and looked inside, where she could see countless masks, headbands with various ears or horns on them, clip-on tails, and probably a lot more that she couldn't see. Aviana took in the sheer number and variety of diguise items for a few minutes before noticing Sans was gone. "Sans?" Aviana called, turning around. "Where did you go?"

"just wakin' up frisk. why?" Aviana heard from above her. She jumped and looked up, startled to see Sans at the top of the stairs, leaninng on the railing. _Wh-what the hell...? How did...?_ Sans raised a brow at her, looking highly amused. "Morning," Frisk muttered, walking out of Papyrus' room. They blinked when they noticed Aviana's expression. "Uh, what's with the pale face, Aviana?" they asked. They looked between the girl and Sans a few imes with a frown. "Is Sans pranking you across time and space? Ugh, I hate when he does that," they said, giving Aviana a simpathetic look.

... What? "c'mon, kid, i know that's not true," Sans said, suddenly behind Frisk. Both teens jumped. How the _hell_ was that possible?! "Sans, I swear...!" Frisk shouted, though there was a hint of a smile on their face. "what? i can't have fun now?" Sans asked teasingly. Frisk rolled their eyes and playfully stomped downstairs. "So, what's this bin for?" they asked. "A bunch of disguise options. You and Sans did agree I was too obviously human, so he... got them for me to look through," Aviana explained. Frisk smiled. "Can I look, too?" Sans shrugged, suddenly back in their lines of sight. "go for it, kid. s'not like you really need to, but it wouldn't hurt," he said. "Cool!" they exclaimed, diving head-first into it. The humans spent the rest of the morning trying on costumes, not even aware breakfast existed anymore.


	14. An Icy Welcome

**If you** _ **aren't**_ **new to this story, I recommend you go back and re-read the previous chapters. You don't have to, of course, I'm pretty sure nothing that'll have a significant impact on later chapters has changed, but I spent a lot of time modifying every chapter so that it reads a bit smoothers and has more detail. Also, welcome back! Sorry it took me so long to update again, life happened, I lost inspiration, more life bull, I forgot fanfiction existed for a while... but now I finally feel like I have enough time and energy to get back to this! So, I hope you enjoy, and that I really can keep updating this semi-regularly again!**

"alright, you two done finally?" Sans called into the bathroom. "Just another minute!" Frisk shouted back. "you said that five minutes ago," Sans reminded them.

"So, how do I look?" Frisk asked, turning to Aviana. They had on a white fox tail and ears, and had painted a fox-like face on their own. Instead of their pink-and-blue sweater and pants they had put on a red-and-black striped sweater and a long black skirt, along with red snow boots. "Like a _foxy_ young g- er, young adult," Aviana said. Frisk rolled their eyes. "Looking pretty _wolfish_ yourself there, Aviana," they replied. The two giggled for a minute before Aviana asked, "Really, though. Do I look believable? Like, I didn't overdo it or anything, did I?" Aviana had put on a tail and ears that she thought looked like a wolf's, and then pulled on a pair of fluffy white gloves. She also found an old wolf mask, and she was wearing a plain black t-shirt under a dark purple jacket and a long black skirt of her own with fluffy white knee-socks and pair of grey boots.

"No way! You look great, Aviana," Frisk said. "But, uh, can you see out of that thing? The eye slits are pretty thin." Aviana pulled off the mask and sighed. "No. But we really shouldn't keep Sans waiting any longer, so what else can I do?" she asked. "Maybe cut off the top part and we can blend some make-up on your face so it matches the mask? Or I could do a quick face paint. Something simple should still pass," Frisk offered. Aviana thought for a minute. "I guess the full-face would work better. Just make sure I don't look _too_ human when you're done." "Please, no one down here will question a bipedal wolf lady with a half-tan face," Frisk joked. "Frisk..." Aviana said warningly. "Okay, okay, fine, Miss Picky. I'll do your whole face." Ten minutes later, Frisk set down the face paint and Aviana looked in the mirror. She looked surprising like a wolf, just without a snout.

"Damn, Frisk. How did you get so talented so young?" Aviana asked. Frisk looked down and probably flushed, but Aviana couldn't really tell under the makeup. "Oh, mostly just by trying stuff. My parents are super enthusiastic. If I showed interest for something in front of them once I had to be obsessed with it. So, they've hired a lot of people to teach me things," they explained. "Woah, really? They can just... call up whoever to come to their house and teach their kid?" Frisk nodded. "Pretty much," they answered. "Wow. That's... wow. How? Are they rich or something?"

"Yeah, they own a car company. Cheetah or something I think it is?" Frisk said. "No way, really!? That's so cool!" Aviana exclaimed. "Eh... Not as cool when you grow up in the thick of the business. But it's still pretty neat, I guess. A-anyway, shouldn't we go get Sans now?" Frisk suggested. "Oh, right. Just gimme a sec to adjust my hair." Once her hair no longer looked like a rat's nest, the two walked out into the living room, where Sans was napping on the couch. "Sans! Get up, we're ready!" Frisk shouted. Sans opened an eye tiredly. "whassat, pap?"

"Sans, I said we're ready! Frisk and Aviana? We're monsters now!" Frisk chirped. Sans sat up from his slouched position and rubbed his closed eye socket. "huh. not bad, you two. even matched snowdin's cold theme. if i didn't already know better i would never guess you two were humans in diguise," he said, still sounding pretty groggy. "Thanks! I worked really hard on the makeup," Frisk said. "Yeah, they did. They're awesome at face painting!" Aviana praised. "yeah, sure looks like it. your face actually looks a lot like that of the wolf we have up north, just white instead of grey," Sans said. "Really? Huh. Hope that doesn't make anyone suspicious," Aviana said. "nah, it'll be fine. plenty of monsters from totally different places in the underground look like each other. i doubt anyone'll even think you two are related." Sans stood up. "so. where to first?"

"Uh... I dunno. I don't really know anything about this place, so... wherever you guys think, I guess," Aviana said. "How about Grillby's? It is almost lunchtime," Frisk suggested. "i think i really like you, kiddo," Sans said. "to grillby's then." Sans lead them out the door, and Aviana repressed a shiver. Maybe it was because of how warm the skeletons' house was, but somehow, it felt even colder than when she first arrived. They had only walked a few feet when Aviana was captivated by a large Christmas tree in the center of town.

"Woah. That's a beautiful tree. But I don't think it's Christmas anymore, so why is it up?" Aviana asked. Sans gave her a weird look. "well, uh, that's true. but why would a tree have anything to do with christmas?" he asked genuinely. "But... On the surface-" Frisk nudged Aviana's arm. "Not so loud," they reminded her. "Oh, right, sorry. On the surface, trees are, like, a staple of Christmas decorations. Where else would the presents go?" Aviana whispered. "huh. you'll have to tell me more about that later. well, the reason we have a tree is because a monster was tormented by teens a while ago. they threw all kinds of decorations on her, and she was miserable until some older monsters found her the next day, stumbling around blindly. they took off as many as they could, then they gave her gifts to cheer her up. she chose to live off in the forest after that, away from everyone else, but she still comes by every year during the gifts for gyftrot festival. no, all the gifts aren't really for her, it's just the name."

"What happens during the festival?" Frisk asked. "well first, a few monsters come out and set up booths. they get monsters to come out and leave their presents under the tree one-by-one, and once everyone has left something under the tree, everyone is allowed outside and the festival really begins. there are a couple of food booths, and plenty more for games and shows. at the end of the day, each monster is called to choose a gift other than the one they bought, and they're opened under the tree. once all the thanks are over, the festival's done and everyone cleans up before going home," Sans explained.

"That sounds like a lot fun! So is that happening soon?" Aviana asked. "sadly, you just missed it. we just like to keep the tree up for the next few days until Gyftrot goes back to the forest. she always feels a lot better when she sees it up," Sans explained. "Oh. Okay. Well, maybe we can catch it next time," Aviana commented. "uh, you do realize that's not for a year, right? you think you'll stay that long?" Before Aviana could respond, a voice shouted, "SANS!" Sans tensed and the lights in his sockets vanished. "speak as little as possible," he whispered before turning around. "heya undyne. _water_ you doin in snowdin? thought you hated all this snow," he said. Aviana and Frisk turned around, too, met with the sight of a tall fish-like woman glaring at the trio in front of the tree. She had scaly blue-green skin and large red fins about where ears would be on humans. She had long red hair pulled back into a tight ponytail, and a single glowing yellow eye. Intimidating would be an understatement.

"Why the hell aren't you working? _Again?_ " the woman demanded. "what, am i not allowed a few personal days when family visits?" Undyne opened her mouth- it was filled with two rows of terrifyingly sharp teeth- before what Sans said registered and it closed. "Family?" She studied Aviana and Frisk. "You mean these two? I've never heard of 'em before," she said. "well, we don't really see each other very much. they live all the way out in new home," Sans lied. "Uh huh. Doesn't explain why Paps has never mentioned them once. He loves everyone; I guarentee he would've said _something_ by now if they were really your family."

"no he, uh... he's not met them yet. he was too young when they moved away," Sans said. "Uh huh. And just how are you related?" Undyne asked. Her stare was very disconcerning... "they're, uh, cousins. distant cousins," Sans replied. There was an uncomfortable silence as Undyne continued studying the young humans. After a long time, she stood upright again and laughed. "Nice to meet ya then, punks! Sorry for the tense greeting; gotta stay on my toes in case a human ever show up." She extended a hand. "Name's Undyne. Though you've probably heard of me before, since I'm captain of the Royal Guard." Frisk took it first, and they were almost shaken hard enough to lift off the ground. Undyne then turned to Aviana, and she shook it hesitantly. More accurately, she barely met Undyne's hand before the fish monster amost broke her arm on the first shake. "So what're ya punks doin in Snowdin?" she asked. "they, uh... they..."

"W-we wanted to catch the Gifts for Gyftrot festival," Aviana managed. Undyne raised an eyebrow. "That was two days ago. I guarantee Papyrus would've mentioned you to me by now," she said suspiciously. "Yeah, we kn-know. We, uh... We got held up in..." She glanced at Sans for help. "Hotland! We, uh, overheated halfway through, and we had to stop, s-so we got here late," Frisk explained. "Oh, alright. Where'd you stay?" _Dammit, why do even care?_ Aviana thought. "they found Grillby's family," Sans cut in. "Grillby? Oh, right, the fire monster," Undyne said. "I think I've met his little sister a couple times while she was going through Waterfall to visit him." There was an awkward pause where nobody knew what to say next. "welp. we, uh, were just on our way to grillby's for lunch, undyne," Sans said. "Oh. Right, sure, go ahead. But you better get your butt back to work as soon they leave, or I swear I'll kick your-"

"the kids are here, undyne," Sans interrupted. "Huh?" she glanced over and a crowd of small, awe-struck monsters were standing in a huddle, watching Undyne excitedly. She instantly straightened up to full height and smiled far too wide. "Heya kiddos! When did you get here? What did I tell you about announcing your presence?" she asked. "Sorry, Undyne, you're just so... so cool!" a small yellow monster withou arms said. "Y-yeah, much cooler than us," said a... rock. "WHOAH WOAH WOAH! I know I'm super cool and all, but you NEVER say ANYONE is cooler than YOU!" Undyne roared. "Uh, you guys can leave now I guess. I gotta whip this bunch into shape!" Undyne shouted. The children cheered, shouting about getting to train with Undyne. "Maybe I'll catch you guys on your way back to New Home, though, 'kay?" Undyne said. "And maybe beef up a little on the way, huh?" she said, ruffling Aviana's hair...

...pulling out her ears at the same time. The kids gasped, and the trio tensed as Undyne stared in disbelief at her hand. "Sans," she said calmly. "uh... yeah, undy-?"

"Why did your 'cousin's' ears just come off onto my hand? On a headband?" she asked. "uh... well, ya see, it's a real funny story, lemme tell you," Sans said. "Mhm." She suddenly produced a spear in her other hand and speared the ears. "SANS YOU WERE HIDING A DAMN HUMAN!?" she screeched. "u-uh, hey, you just swore-"

"SCREW WHAT THE KIDS HEAR ME SAY! YOU'RE A TRAITOR TO YOUR KIND, DAMMIT! WHAT WERE YOU THINKING!?" she shouted. "well, y-you see, i was thinking, WE NEED TO RUN!" Sans shouted, grabbing the humans' wrists. "OH NO YOU DON'T!" The same black aura that Aviana always saw when encountering Ruins monsters appeared, except much faster, and if it was possible, darker. The tree ran right into the edge of it. "Ow! What is that!?" Aviana cried, rubbing her nose. "ngh... it's an encounter line. it only appears in violent encounters, like most of undyne's. most monster only make and encounter area, which you can run out of at any time. since most aren't inherently violent, we MOVE!" Sans shoved Aviana and Frisk suddenly, and a barrage of spears just missed them.

"Sans I SWEAR if Papyrus wasn't your brother I would kill you right here, too!" Undyne snarled. "But since you unfortunately ARE..." Sans' soul appeared- it was a dull yellow, and the shape was upsidedown- and it was enveloped in a red outline. "Get OUT!" He flew back and out through an opening that vanished the instant Undyne released him. "Now for YOU TWO," Undyne said in pure disgust. "Are both of you humans?" "Y-ye-"

"NO!" Aviana shouted. "I... It's just me! Frisk really is a monster, they're the one who took me in first! P-please, don't hurt them!" she pleaded. Frisk looked at her in shock. "Aviana, what-?" Frisk began. Their soul appeared then, a bright red that gained a darker red outline. "Then I'll deal with YOU later, too," Undyne said before throwing them out into Snowdin again. The line closed in and pushed Aviana until she was only a few feet away from the large, angry monster. "So. Are you gonna surrender? Or do we have to do this the _hard way?"_ Undyne growled. Aviana thought quickly before deciding, "I-I surrender. J-just please, don't hurt those two." _Not that it really matters. I'll just reset and not come outside in the next trial._ Undyne snorted. "It's not for me to decide, punk." Her soul was pulled out of her chest, and before she could even think to say anything else, spears rained down on her and killed her quickly.

 **And she's finally done! I'm sorry this took so long to finally update again, but a bunch of shit happened that left me depressed for a long time. And once I finally started feeling better, I just couldn't get any good ideas on how to start this chapter. So yeah, this should've already been out weeks ago but I kept getting writer's block on what to do next. But the next chapter shouldn't take too long, so see ya then~!**


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